Responsibilities
by Immicolia
Summary: Watching over a pack of orphans isn't all storytimes and thieving presents for them. Sometimes Crow has to be the grown up.


It should be a simple thing. He's Crow the goddamn Bullet after all, never easily daunted _or_ thwarted. He knows this, tells himself this over and over again as he works. But all the same, inevitably his hand will slip and he'll wind up with a needle digging into his skin. Occasionally drawing blood and Crow will curse furiously under his breath.

It's just a fucking shirt. A shirt with a tear along one of the seams. He's done this before; he knows he's going to have to do it again, so why the hell can he never fix the damn things without stabbing his hand about twenty times over. Eying the row of crooked, somewhat lumpy, stitches for a moment before settling in to work again.

"Big brotheeeerrrr!"

An almost anguished, wailing, howl from somewhere outside causes Crow's hands to jerk slightly, once again driving the needle into his skin and on a distant level he can't help but wonder if at some point during his own childhood if Martha put a curse on him. Something along the lines of, "May you have to deal with a dozen or so kids just like you."

Sighing, Crow sets the (somewhat shoddy) repair job aside. Taking a moment to rub his eyes even as another shriek splits the air, followed by a few whoops of laughter. Crow muttering a few choice curses under his breath as he stalks towards the door of the shack.

"What are you little hellions doing out here?"

"Big brother..." Mia latches on to Crow's waist the instant he steps outside, sniffling loudly as she buries her face in his shirt. "They took Kuri and won't give him back!"

"Ugh. Mia, you little fink. I _told_ you, we're gonna give him back once we're done."

"Done what?" Crow eying Jace, who is quite obviously the ringleader and the one clutching the slightly misshapen ball of fabric that Crow had put together and passed off as a Kuriboh when Mia had been begging for a stuffed Duel Monster on her last birthday.

"Our game. We were playing catch and Seven lost our ball...."

"Did not! You just couldn't catch it!"

"So we needed something else to use and...."

"And it's ball shaped," Crow finishes for him, all too aware of the vague beginnings of a headache starting to pound behind his eyes. "Yea, I get it. Now give Mia back her toy."

"But...."

"Give Mia back her toy, _I'll_ try to find your ball. Where'd you lose it?"

"Um. The water."

Crow has to fight down the urge to bury his face in his hands as that faint headache immediately doubles in intensity. "And what did I tell you about playing next to the water?"

"We weren't! It's Seven's fault anyway, he threw it too far."

"It is NOT! It's your fault cause you suck at catching."

"Nuh-uh."

"Uh-huh."

"Nuh--"

"OKAY!" Crow suddenly very tempted to wring both of their precious little necks. "So it landed in the water. It doesn't matter who's fault it is, it's lost. Right?"

"Yea."

"Fine. Now give Mia her toy."

"Awwwww. But, Crow. Our game...."

"You should have thought of that before you started playing too close to the water, like I told you _not_ to. Now hand it over."

Jace grumbles slightly but complies. Mia letting out a little squeal of delight as she snatches her stuffed toy back before aiming a kick at the older boy's shin. Crow immediately positioning himself between the pair of them to stop things from devolving into further violence. "Hey. Hey! You behave yourself too, Mia. Just because you were wronged doesn't mean you get to hit him. Now go play."

"Kay." Mia pausing long enough to stick her tongue out at the boys before running off and Crow sighs, deciding to let that one slide. (_Choose your battles, Crow. Choose your battles...._) Turning his attention back to the sullen looking group of boys after a moment.

"I expect all of you to leave her alone."

"But what about our ball?" Jace's voice sliding into a whine that leaves Crow's headache pounding double-time against his temples.

"If you're very, very, good and don't bother the girls, I'll think about finding you a new one the next time I head out. Okay?" Crow silently hoping that he's conveying an appropriately stern and parental-like expression and nodding slightly as the boys mutter in agreement and wander off. Soon enough left standing alone in front of his shack as the kids look for other ways to entertain themselves. A heavy sigh escaping Crow's lips as he once again turns back to his nemesis in the form of mending.


End file.
